Small business sentiment fell again in October as the U.S. government shutdown and hiring difficulties raised worries among owners. Close Key Takeaways An end to the government shutdown may be coming just in time for small businesses, who are reporting hiring difficulties, slower sales and weaker profits amid the work stoppage, a closely watched survey of business owners showed. "The shutdown will be resolved by year-end, hopefully sooner, but until then our economic measures will show weak economic growth ...